


Sugary Tongues and Heart-Shaped Eyes

by orphan_account



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-11-18
Updated: 2012-11-18
Packaged: 2017-11-18 23:56:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,453
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/566739
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Harry and Niall spend Valentine's Day together. It's a stupid holiday.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Sugary Tongues and Heart-Shaped Eyes

**Author's Note:**

> disclaimer: this is entirely fictional, isn't meant to infer anything about these actual people. don't share this with anyone that it's written about, please

“Are you _positive_ that Louis won’t find this too stupid?” Liam is holding a white teddy bear out in front of him, eyes so intense that Harry worries the bear will burst into flame. “I don’t want it to seem childish, you guys. It’s only part of the present, but still, it’s not dumb is it?”  
  
“Celebrating Valentine’s Day with your boyfriend indoors is childish, Liam,” Niall yells from an aisle over, and Harry bites the inside of his cheek to stop from laughing. “Buy him a pint and snog him in the back of the cinema like everyone else.”  
  
“Niall, that’s just -” Liam lets out an exasperated sigh and shakes the teddy bear. “Now I see why you don’t have a girlfriend; you’re rubbish when it comes to things like romantic holidays.”  
  
Niall comes around the corner of the aisle grinning and Harry throws an arm around his shoulder. “Now Liam, that’s no way to talk to someone.” Liam pulls an extremely apologetic face and Harry anchors Niall to his side. “Anyways, Niall’s treating me to a proper date on Valentine’s Day, isn’t that right?”  
  
Niall scratches at his head for a moment, considering, and then shrugs. “Yeah, I suppose I don’t have anything better to do.” His eyes dart between the teddy bear Liam is clutching and Harry’s face. “But if you’re expecting something as sappy as a teddy bear, you can count me out.”  
  
Harry laughs, buries his face in Niall’s neck and sighs. “I guess a pint and a snog in the back of the cinema will do.”  
  
Niall sticks his tongue out at Liam.  
  
+  
  
Louis throws himself Harry’s bed dramatically, head hanging off the end. He looks at Harry upside down and pulls the most ridiculously tragic face Harry has ever seen before rolling on his stomach, sticking his lower lip out.  
  
“I just don’t understand why you can’t _tell me_ ,” Louis whines, swatting at Harry’s thigh. “I only want to know because I’ve yet to get him a gift and I don’t want to do anything too extravagant.”  
  
“We both know whatever you end up doing will be too extravagant, Louis,” Harry reminds him, sitting down with his back against the headboard of his bed. Louis crawls over and puts his head in Harry’s lap, and Harry runs his fingers through Louis’ hair, who almost purrs with delight. “Anyways, why are you so mental about this? It’s not like a bad Valentine’s Day is going to break you two up.”  
  
“Bad Valentine’s Days leave a lasting impact on _everyone_ , Harry,” Louis points out. “Remember when you brought Cara out to dinner and she ended up with food poisoning?”  
  
“That wasn’t _my_ fault,” Harry interjects, glaring at Louis. “How was I to know she’d end up ill?”  
  
Louis stares at him blankly. “You don’t bring a girl for _tacos_ on Valentine’s Day, Harry.”  
  
“She said she liked tacos,” Harry hums, shaking his head. “Anyways, you could give Li a chocolate bar and he’d still moon over you. He’s smitten.”  
  
“Speaking of smitten,” Louis says, a smirk slowly lighting up his whole face. “Liam told me Niall’s bringing you out for Valentine’s Day.”  
  
Harry’s whole face flushes and the heat that has built up in his cheeks and underneath the collar of his jumper is smothering. He strips himself of his sweater and hastily pulls down his t-shirt as Louis pokes at his belly.  
  
“Niall,” Harry starts, his voice faltering. “He, um. Liam was just making fun of him a lot.”  
  
“And poor, innocent Niall can’t stand up for himself?” Louis cocks an eyebrow and Harry throws his arms over his face, hiding his eyes in the crooks of his elbows. “You tricked Niall into bringing you out on the most romantic day of the year because you have a hopeless crush on him.”  
  
“I don’t have a hopeless crush on Niall,” Harry mumbles into his elbows.  
  
“You do. You love his blonde hair and his red cheeks and how he always ends up draping himself over you when he’s wrecked.”  
  
“You always drape yourself over me when you’re wrecked too, Louis,” Harry glares at him and Louis laughs, laughs right in Harry’s face.  
  
“Correct, I do – not sure if I nip at your neck and press sloppy kisses along your jawline, though.” Louis reaches up and ruffles Harry’s hair. “It’s okay, Harry – I think it’s rather cute, you and Niall.”  
  
“Nothing’s going to happen,” Harry protests, jamming his fingers through Louis’ hair a bit roughly, so that he winces. “Zayn’s got that blonde girl from geography to take out, you and Liam will be together and there’s no use in Niall and I sitting home alone.”  
  
“You could always ask that girl from your history class you tell me about sometimes,” Louis suggests. “You know, the one with the dark hair and great ass that always says hi to you.”  
  
“I don’t think so,” Harry replies, picking at a loose string on his comforter.  
  
“Because you love Niall,” Louis says back, and then dissolves into laughter.  
  
Harry sighs and pushes Louis off of his lap.  
  
+  
  
It’s freezing outside, but Niall had the impulse for a sudden game of football, and nobody but Harry has said yes.  
  
He rubs his hands together before pulling the sleeves of his long-sleeved shirt down over his hands. His legs are speckled with goosebumps and he’s lucky that he thought ahead enough to have brought a beanie. Niall, at the other end of the field, is in a t-shirt and shorts, cheeks red from the cold.  
  
“Bit chilly out, yeah?” Niall calls, his hands rubbing at his arms. Harry nods, teeth chattering, and Niall grins. “Freezing my balls off, if I’m honest.”  
  
“Football probably wasn’t the smartest choice,” Harry calls back, and smiles nonetheless, because Niall never thinks anything through. Niall takes a few steps back before sending the ball soaring towards Harry, who bats it back down to the ground with his chest.  
  
They play each other ferociously for an hour or so, before collapsing on the field next to each other, noses pink with the cold and breathing hard, puffs of white that ribbon through the air. The field is silent for a few moments before Niall turns to face Harry, shaking his head.  
  
“All a bunch of bullshit, Valentine’s Day is,” He breathes, and Harry nods in agreement. “Wonder who even came up with the holiday – probably some sad bird looking for a bloke for the night.”  
  
“Or some sad bloke looking for a bird for the night,” Harry replies back and Niall laughs at how polite and incredibly endearing he is.  
  
“Anyways, Zayn had me on the phone for an hour last night,” Niall huffs. “An hour, Harry – couldn’t eat my dinner in peace, he was talking so much.”  
  
“About the blonde girl?” Harry tilts his head to face Niall.  
  
“What to get her, and if that dumb little restaurant with the lights is fancy enough, and if he should wear his red shirt with black jeans, or his blue shirt with black jeans, even though it’s the exact same bloody shirt!” Niall covers his face. “Whole lot of hoopla over nothin’.”  
  
“Yeah,” Harry agrees. “It is.”  
  
“Anyways,” Niall waves his hands in front of him. “I was thinking tomorrow we could get sandwiches at the shop down the street from your house, then watch movies at my place afterwards.” Harry raises his eyebrows and Niall shrugs. “Nothing good’s out at the cinema; I checked. And besides, I have the entire Harry Potter series.”  
  
Harry nods his head. “That sounds nice. I can pick up sandwiches for us and head to your house, if that’s more practical.”  
  
“That might be a better idea, actually.”  
  
Harry studies Niall as he talks. He’s all smooth skin and soft corners and laughter, a brutal contrast from the sharpness and rough edges that is Harry. There is a certain air of easiness around him, that makes anybody who comes within a ten foot radius of Niall feel calm and certain of their actions. If Harry’s being honest with himself, he reckons he’s always had a soft spot for Niall – fond of how incredibly carefree and easy-going life is with him, how Harry doesn’t have to think about the future and consequences when he’s with Niall. It’s all living for the moment, focusing on what makes you happy now rather than what will make you happy once you’ve grown up. Harry likes that, especially when life seems to move at an incredibly fast pace that Harry can’t seem to slow down, no matter how hard he tries.  
  
“Are you listening to me?” Niall snaps his fingers in front of Harry’s face and Harry shakes his head, snapping out of the trance it seems he’d slipped into. “Shit, Harry – what’s on your mind?”  
  
“Nothing, just thinking about what’s to come,” Harry says softly, tugging at the grass.  
  
“Well, that’s stupid,” Niall shrugs. “You’re only 17.”  
  
“Yeah,” Harry watches as Niall stands up and brushes off the seat of his pants, turning to extend a hand to Harry, which he takes. “I suppose you’re right.”  
  
Once they’ve started to walk towards the street, Niall turns to Harry and wraps an arm around him, resting his head on Harry’s shoulder. “Life should be easy, Harry. Just do what you want when you want.”  
  
“Not everyone’s as carefree as you,” Harry sighed, shaking his head. “I’m fine really – just been thinking about some stuff.”  
  
“What kind of stuff?”  
  
“Just – Louis made fun of me for having a crush on someone and I tried to deny it but he’s sort of right,” Harry shrugs. “I do sort of like him. It’s all a bit stupid really. I’m being a bit foolish about it.”  
  
“Louis gets to all of us at some point, mate,” Niall pats Harry’s back and Harry feels a small fire burning in his stomach, weaving its way through all of his limbs until his fingers and toes feel warm. “But if you like the bloke, you should tell him.”  
  
“Yeah,” Harry says quietly, nodding as Niall turns on to his street. “I think I will.”  
  
+  
  
Harry looks at himself in the mirror for the fifth time before finally deciding that jeans, a white t-shirt, red flannel and a dark grey hoodie looks good enough. He was originally wearing a blue flannel, but what with it being Valentine’s Day and all that, red seemed more appropriate.  
  
He’s picked up two sandwiches and a box of pastries, wrapped up in a little white box, all tied together in a lovely red silk bow. Gemma was nice enough to have baked all of Niall’s favorite treats, which Harry thinks is a good enough thank you for occupying his time on Valentine’s Day. As he heads over to Niall’s house, he tries to calm his heart, which is beating at a ridiculously fast pace.  
  
Niall’s mum greets him with a smile and a kiss on the cheek, gestures for him to go upstairs to her son’s room. When Harry pushes open the door, Niall is playing video games, tongue hanging out of his mouth and eyes squinted in concentration.  
  
“Whatever you’ve got there,” Niall says, his eyes flickering to the items in Harry’s hands, “smells amazing.”  
  
“Got your favorite sandwich,” Harry holds it up and shakes it, tossing it next to Niall. “Gemma made us pastries as well; I had to promise to clean her room for an entire week.”  
  
“It’s Valentine’s Day, for Christ’s sake,” Niall pauses the video game to gape at Harry. “She couldn’t have given you pastries for _free_?”  
  
Harry shrugs, sits down with his back against the foot of Niall’s bed. “You know how girls operate, and all that.”  
  
“I don’t,” Niall lunges for his sandwich and rips the paper open. “If I did, I’d reckon I’d have a girlfriend by now. Just like Liam said.”  
  
“Liam was being a twat that day,” Harry shakes his head, mouth full of food. “And anyways, d’you even like any of the girls at our school?”  
  
“No,” Niall states firmly, taking an entirely too big bite of his sandwich. “They’re all weirdos.”  
  
“Right,” Harry agrees. “Weirdos.”  
  
They both devour their sandwiches and pastries, aimlessly chatting and speculating on Zayn’s date, as well as what ridiculously romantic thing Liam and Louis were up to. Niall puts on _Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince_ , climbs on his bed next to Harry and they watch with their mouths slightly parted.  
  
“Ron’s a proper git, he is,” Niall spits, shaking his head. “Clearly loves Hermione and snogs that Lavender chick. I don’t get it.”  
  
“I think,” Harry starts, shaking his head. “I think Ron wasn’t really sure if Hermione liked him back, so he started to go with people that were clearly into him.”  
  
“Bullshit!” Niall shakes his head wildly, sitting up on his knees and swatting at Harry. “Ron and Hermione knew they liked each other since day one – since the train! He just needs to man up and tell her.”  
  
“What if he’s nervous?” Harry’s pulse is racing in a weird way and he feels his palms begin to get a bit sweaty. He wipes them on his pants and forces himself to make eye contact with Niall. “What if he really doesn’t think Hermione, um, likes him back?”  
  
“He just needs to man up,” Niall repeats, eyes bright. “And tell her.”  
  
Harry’s heart is beating and Niall next to him, their hands touching, looking at him in a strange way. His head is tilted and his mouth is wet and those eyes – they’re really, really blue, staring in an earnest way, almost like he’s expecting something.  
  
“I like you,” Harry blurts out, before he can stop himself. “Louis was teasing me about you. I’m not sure if I’m being dumb or if it’s weird but – I just like you a lot.”  
  
“Me?” Niall looks surprised but not freaked out, and Harry takes that as a good sign.  
  
He bites his lips and looks down, drumming his fingers on his legs. “Yeah, you. I suppose I always really have – didn’t want to say anything, though.” He looks up at Niall, who is still staring at him in the same way. Wide-eyed and earnest. “Kind of like Ron and Hermione.”  
  
Niall’s hand bumps Harry’s and Harry looks up, and suddenly Niall’s mouth is on his. It tastes like sugar and pastries and it’s everything Harry expected it would be – soft with a certain urgency to it, a lot of sighs and pulling to get closer.  
  
By the time Niall draws away, Harry is certain he has hearts in his eyes.  
  
“Like Ron and Hermione,” Niall says slowly, and then laughs.


End file.
